Futures
by enyva
Summary: There are so many possibilities when you throw two powerful boys together. With the Wizarding World in danger- but from who and what?- Scorpius and Albus must decide who they truly want to be.
1. Prologue

Hiya! This is my first fic so hopefully it will go well. I'll try to update nicely but we'll see what happens.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the rights to anything vaguely resembling Harry Potter. So.... lay off.

Enjoy!

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**Prologue**

The seat was far too small for Harry to sit in comfortably. Not to mention that Shacklebolt and McGonagall were staring sternly at him. He hadn't even done anything- they had just sent him an owl early this morning telling him that they urgently had to meet with him.

But they weren't speaking. And judging from the small chair sitting next to Harry- someone else had been owled and had decided no to come.

This told Harry that it wasn't as he had feared. James had not done something so extraordinarily stupid that the Headmistress and the Minister wished to speak with him. And quite honestly, Harry adored his son but still wished at times that he was less enthusiastic about trouble.

But the empty chair worried him also.

McGonagall sighed.

"I see that Mr. Malfoy will not be joining us today- which I believe to be quite unfortunate." Her eyes flashed and she focused solely on Harry. Harry instantly sat just a bit straighter and thought- Malfoy?

"Why is it that you called both of us here? The letter was not clear." Harry asked. What in the world would have worried these two rather unshakable people enough to call on a Potter and a Malfoy?

"That, Mr. Potter, is because the subject at hand is not entirely clear." McGonagall answered.

"Harry. You no doubt took a course in Divination at your time in Hogwarts?" Shacklebolt asked- Harry gave a slight nod of his head. "Then you learned about the rarest form- Seeing?"

Harry shook his head. Shacklebolt pursed his lips and leaned slightly forward to his desk.

"Seeing is separate from the rest of Divination because the Seer is literally thrust into the futures of the world. The amount of possible Seers born is quite small. The amount that don't go insane is even smaller."

"Fascinating." Harry said.

"This pertains to you and Mr. Malfoy because," Shacklebolt sighed and then continued his sentence, "your sons, Albus and Scorpius, are all the sane and the insane Seers can see. In other words, they dominate the future."

McGonagall shook her head and put her hand to her mouth. She seemed upset- perhaps Harry thought, because once again the Wizarding World had two people determining its future.

"What do they see?" Harry asked. His voice was nearly a whisper- simply because the idea seemed secretive.

"Everything. Every possibility that we faced against Voldemort- we are facing those possibilities again. But, it's not clear which side the two young boys are on. Or if they are opposed. Or if they are allies. All we know is that your son and Malfoy's son are quite important to our world."

Harry was sick.

He- perhaps more than anyone- knew that he would only affect the future indirectly now. He was filled with worry and he didn't know what for. Why in the world had they told him this when the futures weren't even set? The only purpose this served was to worry him.

Harry stood.

Quickly he made the decision that he would be a normal father for Albus.

He shook McGonagall and Shacklebolt's hands.

Then he left- silently cursing Malfoy for not even caring to appear.

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Review if you'd like- but thank you for reading!


	2. Chapter 1

Just notice that this takes place FOUR YEARS AFTER THE PROLOGUE.

Oh, and this story will be mostly from Scorpius's point of view.

Disclaimer: See the prologue.

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**Chapter One**

**-Four Years After Prologue-**

Scorpius walked steadily behind his father. He met each gaze that looked to long at the pair of Malfoys. The ashamed eyes looked away quickly. Scorpius did not sneer or laugh at them- he was used to this. His father just strode in front of him- and Scorpius knew that he was looking at absolutely nothing. Just staring proudly ahead.

As if they didn't have such a clear path because people detested their family so much.

As if people didn't mute their conversations- because perhaps the Malfoys were spying.

Scorpius felt a flare of hatred, unconsciously his lip started to pull into a snarl and he tensed his muscles and was ready for a fight.

His father suddenly spun and tapped Scorpius lightly on the shoulder with his cane. The cane had once been Draco's father- Lucius.

"Remember they are human. We must rise above their hate."

For what? Scorpius thought angrily- their family name. A name already tarnished enough that it would never be good enough again? But instead of bursting out, he quelled his anger and nodded quietly.

His father turned again and began walking. Scorpius followed. He tried to copy his father and focused on the older man's back. No matter what happened- he would stare resolutely at the black cloak.

Not for the first time, Scorpius felt that he would work to redeem the Malfoy name so that his own children would never have to live as he had lived.

The pair of Malfoy's finally made it to the shop.

"Wait here Scorpius." His father said, and then he disappeared into the shop.

Scorpius found a nearby empty bench. He sat and adjusted himself comfortably- his father would often take quite a long time in shops. Fixing his face so that anyone looking would think he was casually bored, Scorpius stared at nothing. His mind detached and drifted to the upcoming Hogwarts term.

This would be his fourth year- and so it was his midpoint at Hogwarts. He had no real goals for this year unlike his first three years. Now he supposed, he could worry himself with preparing this early for the OWLS. Perhaps, he thought, I should start searching for a suitable wife- or at least a respectable girlfriend. Yes, he was young but that didn't mean he couldn't be prepared.

"Look- there's that Malfoy git. Squirlious? Is that your name Malfoy?"

Scorpius couldn't help but focus on the man in front of him. James Potter- sixth year- stood there looking content with himself. Rose Weasley flanked him on his left side. Behind the two, stood Albus Potter staring out into the distance as if his brother was only talking to a wall.

This angered Scorpius more than the sasquatch in front of him.

"Hey- you troll. I'm talking to you. Do you understand?" James asked. He spoke slowly- as if he was addressing an idiot. Scorpius felt his wand in his pocket and itched to curse the boy in front of him. But he didn't.

"Sadly." Scorpius said. He chose to stand- nearly touching James. The older man smelled clean- but his breath reeked. Scorpius vaguely cursed- he hated being shorter than others.

"Look, James, it can talk. Does it say anything else?" Rose Weasley said. Scorpius glanced over at her. She was perhaps more dangerous than her cousin. She was just as brilliant as he was- and she had the advantage of numbers.

Even if Albus Potter seemed resolute to only stare at the crowd.

"Don't expect too much of it now, Rose. It's only a Malfoy."

Scorpius didn't crack. He almost did- his mask cracked for one small second and then he was back again. Not giving a shit. No muscle on his face moved.

The smallest, weakest part of him just wanted his father to walk out of the shop. His father would know what to do.

Scorpius despised himself in that instance.

And so he did crack.

He didn't attack through magic- instead he just punched James in the face. The force made a satisfying crunching noise and then James punched Scorpius.

Scorpius didn't care that he was rolling on the ground fighting like a muggle. He didn't care that people stopped to watch. He didn't care that Rose was screaming at them to stop- as if she suddenly cared. He didn't care that the only person ignoring them was Albus. He didn't care that his nose was broken and his stomach was bruised and that he was nearly convinced that he was never going to heal.

He just cared that he managed to get over James and force the other man's face into the dirt.

"Take it back." He screamed- twisting James's arm nearly out of the socket. The other man screamed something incoherent. A large part of Scorpius was satisfied to see that James was starting to tear up due to the pain.

"I can't hear you. Take it back." He pulled on the arm.

"I take it back- I take it back Malfoy." James screamed. He was full blown crying now. Rose was screaming and wouldn't shut up. Hands pulled at Scorpius to let go of James.

For a moment Scorpius wanted nothing more than to whisper in James' ear- I can't hear you- and then to break the man's arm.

But then he remembered his father's blank face earlier that day and felt only shame. Letting go of the larger man, Scorpius stood up. The crowd dissipated and glared solely at Scorpius.

He didn't care.

By the time the crowd had completely left, Rose was still holding her cousin and screaming something obscene at Scorpius.

"He didn't hurt you to much did he?" Scorpius heard someone ask. Turning he saw Albus standing there calmly. A surge of adrenaline told him that Albus was going to attack. But his mind told him that this was not a fight.

"Not that you care. You just stand there."

Albus laughed.

Scorpius wondered if perhaps he was completely insane.

"Well, I watched. I did care which one of you won. Besides- I've received plenty of James's punches." The other boy said. Scorpius wondered if he should feel insulted.

"James Sirius Potter- what in the world?" A man's voice called out.

Scorpius watched Harry Potter walk up. The older man did not notice him and Scorpius considered that half lucky. But then, he turned and Scorpius saw something quite odd.

His eyes flicked between his youngest son and Scorpius several times- and his face suddenly became overcome by fear and worry.

"What are you doing talking to my son, Malfoy?" Harry Potter said. Scorpius wondered if he should tell the other man that his son had started talking to him and was perhaps mildly insane.

"Potter." Scorpius felt an instant rush of relief. His father suddenly stood beside him, looking strong and imposing. "My son and I will be leaving. Have a fine day."

Scorpius turned away from the Potter's with his father. He caught Draco's eyes though- and the disappointment shining there nearly killed him.

"You'll need a bath and a Healer son." His father didn't say- I hope you appreciate what that will cost us. But, Scorpius heard it all the same.

He would just have to do better.

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I feel so sorry for Scorpius. He feels so trapped by other's hate.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed and if you want to review please do!


	3. Chapter 2

Thank you for the review of the prologue- it was really appreciated.

Disclaimer: See the Prologue

Now. STORY TIME!

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**Chapter Two**

The train's smoke billowed directly into Scorpius's face. The young man ignored the smoke- sparing only a small cough to show that he had in fact noticed it. He stood proudly, his left hand resting calmly on his trunk. His father stood with his mother about a step or so behind Scorpius. He figured he should say goodbye before he left for another year. But for now he was content to watch the younger students frantically rushing past him- pushing towards the train. Scorpius was assured that his friends had saved seats already- Harfang and Pullox generally did find seats.

The train whistled.

So, Scorpius turned to face his father and mother. His mother was smiling thinly at him- and he knew it was a real smile. She just, Scorpius thought sadly, is unused to smiling. His father looked the same way he always looked- as if he was seeing nothing and didn't particularly care.

"I'll write often Mother- do take care." Astoria whimpered something back and Scorpius nodded at her. A weak hug ensued- his mother gripped him tightly as if she was afraid she might lose him forever. And Scorpius hated this because she did it every year.

Scorpius let go of his mother; she, though, still clutched his forearms. His father was suddenly looking at him and Scorpius was struck by the sad intelligence that shone there. His mother finally let go of Scorpius's forearms and the two Malfoy men shook hands.

"Have fun and do well this year, Scorpius." Draco said. Scorpius saw that his eyes focused steadily on the bruise on Scorpius's cheek. Draco had told the Healer to leave the lighter bruises for Scorpius to heal naturally.

Scorpius felt ashamed of his fight once again- if only because his father was so displeased.

The train whistled again.

Turning, Scorpius grabbed his trunk, and began walking towards the train.

He found his friends in a small amount of time. Harfang Flint and Pullox Selwyn sat on the left side of the cabin with a smaller Madeline Nott sitting between them. On the right side Thomas Pucey sat. They all said hello to Scorpius before launching back into their conversation about the summer. Scorpius didn't reply, he just put his trunk in the rack and sat down beside Thomas Pucey. Bored, Scorpius started picking at the material covering the seats- his friends wouldn't mind. They were quite used to his antisocial behavior; he didn't have to pretend for them.

And he might've spent the rest of the train ride picking at the seat if the door to the cab hadn't slid open.

Looking up he saw a trio of Slytherin girls. The leader was Violetta Pritchard- a tall and beautiful girl. Her face was pulled into a semi-pleasant smile and she was looking at him with half-lidded eyes. Flanking her on each side were Lillian Higgs and Aurora Parkinson. Both were as beautiful as their leading friend- but they watched Scorpius's friends like hawks.

"Scorpius! I just wanted to come say hello to you- and make sure that you'll be Seeking again this year." Violetta said. Her voice hit notes that would make a dog squeak in pain but Scorpius just smiled. He saw her eyes exploring his entire body and he was torn between utter disgust and being complemented.

And then he realized that Violetta would make an excellent and respectable girlfriend. She was a Slytherin- which would make her acceptable to his father- and she was well-liked by most of the Hogwarts students. Scorpius smiled and he knew that the three girls took it to be flirtatious.

"Well, you'll be on the team?" Scorpius said. His voice was just a bit deeper than normal- let her think that she affected him. He uncrossed and opened his legs while leaning forwards- he'd read just a bit about body language. He had to appear interested.

Violetta giggled and played with a bit of her hair. Scorpius took note of that clearly- she was unconsciously flirting with him. "Of course Scorpius, I'll be a Chaser this year." She was using his name constantly- another sign of attraction. This would be easy by all accounts, Scorpius thought. The smile plastered on his face grew larger.

"Then I'll be there Violetta." She giggled again and then said goodbye. Sliding the door shut she walked down the corridor with her friends. When she looked back a couple seconds later- Scorpius was waiting. He glanced quickly away- as if he was staring secretly- and then looked back again.

"Scorpius man- she's not going to be hard to win over." Thomas Pucey said. Harfang and Pullox were nodding in agreement while Madeline looked at Scorpius with a high level of consideration. Scorpius smiled and said, "Yeah, she's quite beautiful don't you think?"

His friends agreed with him. Scorpius knew they would. He'd chosen his friends like they'd chosen him- they had all been raised to be completely Slytherin. The Slytherin that Scorpius knew was a watered down version of the Slytherin his father had known. The kids that made it into Slytherin in these years might not have made it twenty years ago- and not because of blood status but because of character.

The four friends surrounding Scorpius however were fully and completely Slytherin just like he was.

So he didn't doubt that they knew the true motivations behind his abrupt courting of Violetta. Growing bored again, Scorpius went back to picking at his seat material. Madeline and Pullox began a conversation on about a potion's material. Thomas and Harfang started reading ahead for their classes.

They were nearly too halfway to Hogwarts when Scorpius excused himself for the bathroom.

Sliding down the hallway, Scorpius found the bathroom stall to be quite unoccupied. He was nearly down when he heard a two people stomping down the hallways.

"I'm just a little concerned that's all Albus." That would be Rose Weasley. Scorpius paused at the door. He debated between walking out into the corridor and embarrassing the pair or just listening in on the conversation. "I understand being interested in Defense Against the Dark Arts- but I'm there for only a purely academic grade. I'm not so sure about you."

Now that- that is interesting.

And it seemed that Albus Potter simply didn't want to respond to his cousin. Which Scorpius could certainly identify with- she was a rather atrocious person. But, he'd always thought that Gryffindors like the Weasley's and Potter's would give responses even to people they deemed stupid and lesser.

"I'm exploring, Rose. I'm rising above that idea you have that anything Dark is evil."

"But it is." Rose whispered as Scorpius strained to hear, "I think you're more interested in the Dark Arts than any sort of Defense. Everyone else seems to think so too. And we're worried. We're allowed to be worried for you Albus, aren't we?"

Now that- that is just plain shocking.

"Are you quite done?" Albus didn't even sound like someone who was brushing off a close relative. He sounded, Scorpius thought, more like someone who was casually telling a lost tourist were to go. There was a small gasp that Scorpius could only assume came from Rose Weasley.

The stomping away down the corridor told Scorpius that Rose had decided to leave. Albus, however, still seemed to be standing in the corridor. Scorpius imagined he was watching his cousin leave and that he was glaring after her.

That is until the bathroom door was pulled open and Albus stood there watching Scorpius.

"You know Scorpius, one generally doesn't eavesdrop on family conversations." Scorpius schooled his face so that he didn't look shocked- he hadn't made a noise. He hadn't bumped in to anything. Dear god, he had even been breathing quietly. How had Albus heard him?

"Well, Albus," Scorpius said, "I'm not one who acts according to what others think should generally happen." His voice sneered on the generally- and it was a mite deeper as if that would conceal it from other's listening. The other man reached up to scratch his own head and then flicked his eyes briefly towards Scorpius's eyes.

Albus moved his hand from behind his own head and cupped Scorpius's cheek. It would have been a tender movement- if Albus hadn't been pressing on the bruise. Scorpius was paralyzed- he and Albus were still staring directly at each other. It was the eyes, Scorpius decided with a bit of panic, the other man's eyes were pinning him down. His mind was telling his body to move, but he simply could not move.

And then Albus looked at the bruise his hand was covering; the distaste in his eyes as clearly read as Scorpius's father's disappointment had been.

"Are you done, or were you planning on spending the entire trip in the bathroom?" Albus asked. Scorpius snarled at the other man. He found the strength to push away the other man's hand and then Scorpius brushed past Albus. Their shoulders hit. Ignoring the motivation that told him to apologize, Scorpius made his way back to his cabin.

By the time he was picking at the material in his seat again Scorpius realized he'd been dismissed in much the same was Rose Weasley had.

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Oh, boys! When will they be civil to each other?

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I would love to receive your reviews. And just a note- I will be gone for about a week (Band Camp… Yay and Meh…) so… no updates for a while.


	4. Chapter 3

H'okay! Time for another installment. Thank you for your two wonderful reviews!

Disclaimer: See the Prologue.

And…. HERE WE GO!

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**Chapter Three**

Scorpius hovered above the Quidditch pitch. Below him screaming masses of green and red convulsed- each cheering for their respective teams. The other players rushed around the field hoping desperately to score for their team. Scorpius and Gryffindor's seeker, Lilac Coote, watched eachother and watched for the Snitch. Scorpius rose above the girl for just a bit- he wanted a better view and perhaps a bit of colder air. The game had been going for about forty minutes and so Scorpius found his mind lagging.

This simply would not do.

But, without fail, his mind would recede to plots concerning Violetta Pritchard. And so he would find himself watching her blur on the field. Then his mind would escape to the assignments he had waiting for him in his room. So, he would start writing papers long before they were due. The smallest part of his mind- as it had slowly become accustomed to- was always thinking about Albus Potter. What he had overheard on the train, and Albus's actions towards him, were always at least captivating some small portion of Scorpius's mind.

This also would not do.

Then Lilac was diving. Scorpius threw aside his thoughts and followed her- urging his broom to bring him to her side. He had not seen the Snitch- but he would he was certain. Unless of course, she was attempting a Wronski Feint- but that was unlikely; Scorpius was a far better flyer than Lilac was and she knew it. And suddenly he was beside her.

They dove together as two streaks of red and green in the sky. Scorpius saw the Snitch before him and reached for it. It was just outside the reach of his fingers- barely a hairsbreadth away from him. Scorpius willed with all of his body- just a bit more, he told himself, just a bit more.

But the ground was growing close and so the two Seekers pulled out of their dive. They did not miss the Snitch- instead they followed it closely. Around the field they flew nearly brushing the heads of their classmates.

The Snitch was almost within reach.

And then Scorpius blacked out.

The Infirmary was actually not a comforting place to wake up into. At first, Scorpius could only feel his cold toes and had the faintest impression of dull light. Then he slowly started to hear the murmuring of the crowd surrounding him and his body presented him with a painful dull pain. Then finally he nearly whimpered as a pain in his head shocked him fully back into consciousness.

"Oh, Scorpius! You're back. I'm so glad. Everyone was so worried."

That was Violetta, Scorpius decided. He could tell by the ringing her voice left in his ears. She did sound truly upset however, and that reassured Scorpius. Wouldn't do to have a girlfriend who didn't care about you.

Immediately after Violetta spoke, many other voices started speaking. They blurred together and Scorpius wondered if they knew he simply couldn't understand them. It was somehow reassuring though- as if they had faith that no matter how badly he was injured, he would recover just the same.

"What happened?" He asked. That's truly all he was concerned about- the injury on the back of his head was not helping him focus at all. In fact, it was like he could barely focus on anything at all. His head was pulsing uncontrollably with pain and Scorpius forced it through pure will-power to recede.

"One of the Gryffindor Beaters- I didn't see which- knocked a Bludger at you. It hit you in the back of the head. You were launched forward and caught the Snitch- but obviously you were knocked out and injured." Pullox explained. The other students had mercifully fallen silent.

Scorpius nodded to show that he understood. Part of him laughed at the irony- he had managed to move those couple of inches forward to catch the Snitch but not without help. He wondered how the stupid Gryffindor felt- and he smiled at the thought of the poor fellow's housemates reactions to him. Scorpius's friends took his smile to mean that he was pleased to have won and so they launched into praising the game. He listened quietly- nodding at the appropriate moments.

"Now, dears, you need to scurry of. Mr. Malfoy will be rejoining you in a few days- but he needs his rest." Madam Pomfrey said, coming up to Scorpius's group of friends. She sternly watched the group leave and then she turned quickly to face Scorpius. Scorpius resisted flinching away from her intense eyes.

"You'll need a few days bed rest here to make sure you didn't get a concussion Mr. Malfoy- but you'll be quite alright in no time."

He wished she hadn't called him Mr. Malfoy. Scorpius was not his father and he certainly wasn't old enough to be called a Mr. But, as it was, Scorpius grunted and Madam Pomfrey seemed to take that as agreement. She left quickly, rushing over to another bed to help treat a girl who was breaking out into sores which spelled some rather nasty words.

Scorpius relaxed onto his pillows and wasn't long there before he started to doze off.

He dreamt of his mother and father waving goodbye to him at the Kings Cross Station again- but this time he was leaving for his first year. Then his dream melded into his first Herbology class where Professor Longbottom had stumbled over his name. After that his dream sped him through his first year- but it was a darker year than what he had remembered. The dream terrified him but a detached part of Scorpius didn't much care. The year he was dreaming of wasn't outrageous enough to be completely impossible.

"Why is it that every time I see you- you are injured?" A voice asked. Some part of Scorpius recognized the voice and he tried to wake himself up. Blinking he looked up.

"Potter?" He asked- he sounded indignant and shocked because he was. What in the world was Albus Potter doing here? It's not as if he would come to visit Scorpius.

"Malfoy?" Albus said. He was, by the sound of it, mocking Scorpius for sounding shocked. Scorpius resisted hitting the other man because he was already injured and some part of Scorpius wouldn't put it past Albus to retaliate as if Scorpius wasn't injured.

"Why are you here?" He asked instead.

"Where you hoping perhaps that I was Ms. Pritchard?" Albus said. Scorpius only got more annoyed. "I volunteered to help Pomfrey out in the Infirmary. I'm somewhat interested in medicine. Now, can you sit up so that I can rebandage your head?"

Recognizing that Albus was most likely telling the truth and that this wasn't some plot to somehow kill him, Scorpius sat forward. Albus slowly started to unbind the bandages around Scorpius's scalp. Scorpius hissed when he saw the amount of his blood covering the bandage.

"How'd you do this?" The other man asked. Scorpius wondered how daft Albus really was.

"There was a Quidditch match today, perhaps you heard?" Scorpius said. He turned a bit to look at Albus.

"I forgot actually. Was in the library writing a paper." His eyes flickered and Scorpius wondered if he was lying. "Who won?" This convinced Scorpius that Albus was lying even though there was nothing there to really tell him that this was the case.

"We did. What was the paper about?" The best way to uncover a liar was to question the lies for details. If the person slipped up then they were lying. If the person paused for to long they were lying. If they didn't- then they were either well practiced or they weren't lying. Scorpius watched Albus's face closely looking for any clues.

"It was a Herbology Paper. Very advanced. You probably wouldn't understand." The insult to his intelligence simply would not do. The slightly unneccarsy pressure on Scorpius's bandage would not do either. Scorpius resisted the urge to hit the uncommunicative young man in front of him.

"I'm sure I would understand. What was the paper about?" As Albus sat back from his bandaging; Scorpius leaned forward slightly- it showed aggression from what he knew of body language.

Albus swallowed hard. He was looking at Scorpius- but not at his eyes. He was looking somewhere on Scorpius's face- and then Scorpius realized where. Albus was staring at his lips.

"You need some rest." Albus said- and then he tore his eyes away from Scorpius nodded and left quickly.

Scorpius was, quite simply, bewildered.

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So… I was gone for couple weeks and I really appreciate the notification/favorite adds HOWEVER- I really ADORED the reviews I received. Tell me what you think!


	5. Chapter 4

Thank you for the reviews. I'm really sorry I haven't updated in forever. I won't even try to make excuses. Hopefully, I'll be a better writer in the future.

Disclaimer: See the Prologue

Now. STORY TIME!

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**Chapter Four**

The wind could only be described as biting.

His Hogsmeade group was magnificently large but Violetta simply insisted on walking towards the front of the group. Something about looking like they were leading everyone else. Scorpius was a bit more worried about staying warm.

"-and Professor Longbottom simply wouldn't help me with my paper."

Scorpius caught that bit of her babble. He coolly ignored the part of his mind that told him that the only reason he was noticing Herbology papers was because of Albus Potter.

"I bet he helped some kids." Scorpius said. He smiled down at her. She was clinging onto his arm- her body was molded carefully into his. If he hadn't been pursuing her simply for logical reasons, the scene might have warmed someone's heart. As it was, Violetta's eyes lit up; she was glad that he seemed to have taken notice of her. Scorpius resisted sneering.

"Oh, Scorpius, he did. He helped those awful Gryffindors. It's not fair- he completely favors them. Especially that Potter kid."

Albus.

Scorpius cursed underneath his breath. He had to stop autocorrecting that man's name.

"Did you just curse?" Violetta said. Her eyes grew larger and she stopped for just an instance. Of course, Scorpius thought, she would be against cursing. Probably stomps on garden snakes too.

"Yes, I did. I'm sorry. It's just he frustrates me so much with his obvious favoritism."

It was the perfect thing to say. Violetta smiled. It would have been blinding and beautiful but Scorpius was too focused on the way her nose crinkled. It made him uncomfortable. If he married her would their children have noses like that? Unacceptable. He'd decided that he would ask her out today; from her body language and the gossip he'd heard it's not like he would be rejected.

Perhaps his father would approve.

Not that that's all Scorpius cared about.

They'd arrived at Hogsmeade and made the group made its way to the Three Broomsticks. A large gust of wind blew them into the large warm building. The girl's went to find seats- enough for eight. Scorpius was pretty happy with his group. He and Violetta; Harfang and Isabella; Pullox and Etain; Thomas and Madeline. Harfang and Pullox had decided to court Violetta's friends while Thomas and Madeline had specifically informed each other that they were simply and always friends. Scorpius already had plans to bring Thomas and Madeline together. Madeline probably already knew.

While his three guy friends joked on their way to order drinks, Scorpius quickly scanned the area. There were three Hufflepuff girls looking around looking confused, a Ravenclaw and a Slytherin on a date, and several Gryffindors lurking around in dark corners with each other.

And Albus Potter, dressed noticeably in all-white robes, standing against the bar.

The two made eye contact.

Scorpius broke first and went to join his friends.

"You going to ask her today?" Thomas said. He always was the more direct of Scorpius's friends.

"Yeah. She's pretty much already buying the wedding dress." Scorpius said. He told himself that he was just psyching himself out. There was no way that Potter was staring at him.

"You're going to marry her?" Thomas said. Pullox and Harfang looked at Scorpius. They knew he didn't feel too strongly about the girl. Though they were all true Slytherins, Scorpius's friends didn't want to return to every idea that their parents had touted.

"God, absolutely not. Have you seen her nose? I'll take two butterbeers." Scorpius said. The bartender nodded and went to fulfill the boy's orders. Thomas and Pullox nodded. Harfang though laughed. His laughter was loud and resounding; Scorpius silently wished his friend was quieter but at the same time envied him. How freeing it would be to laugh so easily.

"Her nose? I thought it was her voice that drove you off."

Scorpius smiled. Quite honestly, Violetta was pretty annoying to Scorpius. But, she was the easiest and best deal he could find right now.

"Yeah, but what do you think about Isabella?" Scorpius let the conversation flow away from himself. As the four boys made their way back to their tables Scorpius assured himself that Albus definitely had not been watching him. In fact, Scorpius couldn't even see the other wizard. Not that he was looking for Albus. The white robes were noticeable.

Violetta managed to lure him away from his friends and to the upper levels. They were secluded enough and the window showed a wonderful white field outside. She was pulling him along with to hands and smiling at him. He supposed this was seductive.

"Scorpius" she said, "you know how I feel about you, right?"

He smiled at her. It might have been a smirk. Either way, she thought it was attractive. And she took it as a yes.

Scorpius could feel the mood of the moment turning mushy. If, he thought, this turns into an emotional cry-fest I will tear her to pieces and then every bit of my careful planning will be shot. Must not tear Violetta into small pieces.

So he kissed her.

It was awkward. At least for him it felt forced and a little like an accident. Violetta did not think so. Her eyes were slammed shut, arms encircling him, and pulling him farther into the corner. Scorpius let her; something was disturbing the white field outside.

It looked like random lines of color being thrown across whiteness. Scorpius looked harder; this was hard though, Violetta really wanted his attention. Upon closer inspection though, it seemed like there were two wizards dueling.

One threw a curse and the other's hood flew backwards.

It was Albus. The man was laughing; he looked alive.

The other duelist looked panicked.

It was over quickly enough; the opposite duelist made an escape.

And then, inexplicably, Albus looked straight at Scorpius.

Albus looked away.

"Violetta." Scorpius said, breaking away from the girl. Her eyes were on fire. Like this he found her attractive.

"What?"

"Be my girlfriend."

He took the answering kiss as an affirmative answer.

Later that night, Scorpius was skimming books in the library. Finding his book of interest, Astrology In Eastern European Countries And Its Effects On Dragons, Scorpius sat down.

Time passed quickly, until there was a slam on his desk. Scorpius looked up.

"Do you make a habit of lurking in dark corners with young girls?" Albus said. He was sneering. There was something like disgust on his face. His voice was too loud Scorpius frowned and flipped to another page.

"You're supposed to be quiet in a library. Or are you just a loud brute like your brother?"

Albus slapped the desk again. He didn't say anything. He just glared.

"That young girl happens to be my girlfriend." Scorpius said, "A willing and pleasing girlfriend."

He wasn't quite sure why he added that last part.

"The one you're using. With the annoying voice and weird nose? That one?"

Scorpius hadn't even known he could move this fast. But he had Albus firmly by the collar; he didn't like anyone insulting what was his. Even if Scorpius didn't particularly care too much about Violetta.

"Shut up."

Albus shut up. Scorpius threw him a bit away from himself. The proximity was distracting.

"And mind telling me why you were fighting someone outside the Broomsticks?" Scorpius said. It was an afterthought.

"White robes aren't as noticeable in snowy weather. We wanted to try it out."

"Mind telling me the real reason?"

"Yes." Albus said.

And then he threw a punch at Scorpius's jaw. As it connected, Scorpius thought that he should not make a habit of fighting Potter's. But, that didn't stop him from retaliating.

The reason for the fight? Albus said it was because Scorpius had insulted his brother. The professors believed him. Scorpius didn't believe him for a second.

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Reviews are yuuuuuuuummmmmmmmmmmmmy!


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